Texture and Transparency – Short visual tours of the Glass House

NEW CANAAN, Conn. (May 13, 2020) — Texture & Transparency: Philip Johnson’s Glass House. Architectural photographer and filmmaker Michael Biondo and creative reality capture duo Michael Robison and Dallas Bennett (aka MYND Workshop) have collaborated to create an episodic series of short visual tours of the Glass House, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

This video series seeks to create an ambient and intimate tour of Philip Johnson’s Glass House property in New Canaan, CT. These films are unique in the sense that they combine film and the use of point cloud technology to allow for a tectonic and artistic examination of the buildings in order to better understand the architecture and site design.

“Point clouds are an exceptional visual tool for understanding a space in ways which the human eye doesn’t typically allow,” said Michael Robison, co-founder and CEO of MYND Workshop. “The Glass House site could not be a more perfect subject to be experienced as a point cloud, providing insight into the complex relationships between the various structures and their careful placement throughout the dramatic landscape which defines the Glass House property.”

These films focus on a dialogue between Biondo’s carefully composed videography and MYND’s spectral point cloud visuals along with narration from archival audio of Philip Johnson himself. Each video presents one of the different structures which comprise the Glass House property.

Biondo’s breathtaking video manages to capture those visceral experiences which one may come across when visiting the 49-acre property. These scenes offer the textures and light which define the sensual and emotional nature of Johnson’s work. In contrast, MYND Workshop’s animations speak to the layers and transparencies which Johnson often referred to when speaking about the design of the various buildings on the site, allowing for a design perspective that has never been seen before.

MYND Workshop’s medium of choice, the Point Cloud, may be best described as a 3D photograph which adds a spatial dimension to an otherwise 2D scene. The Brooklyn-based studio recognized early on the inherent beauty of the point clouds, exploring their creative potential by using them to create ethereal animations like those in the series.

This project was made possible by the generosity of Joanne and Stanley Marder.

About MYND Workshop
MYND Workshop is a Brooklyn based reality capture studio founded by Michael Robison and Dallas Bennett. Since 2015, they continue to implement a combination of 3D laser scanning and photogrammetry processes to document architecture, historic sites, film sets and artwork. MYND pushes the boundaries of these technologies by merging utility and creativity. Past projects have included Waldorf Astoria Hotel New York, Trinity Church Wall Street, World Trade Center Plaza, 9/11 Museum & Memorial, New York Stock Exchange, The Ford Foundation, The Brooklyn Navy Yard among many others.

About Michael Biondo
Michael Biondo is a New York and Connecticut-based photographer / filmmaker specializing in architecture and design. He studied Photography, Graphic Design, and Art History at the Pratt Institute where he earned a BFA. Recently Biondo contributed photographs to Rizzoli’s 2014 monograph, Allan Greenberg: Classical Architect; Design Book’s 50 U.S. Architects, published in 2015; and Inventive Minimalism, Monacelli Press, 2017. He co-authored and photographed Mid-Century Houses Today, Monacelli, 2015. His photographs have appeared in Architectural Digest, the Wall Street Journal, Architizer, Dwell, a+u Magazine and other publications.

About the Glass House
The Glass House, built between 1949 and 1995 by architect Philip Johnson, is a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation located in New Canaan, CT. The pastoral 49-acre landscape comprises fourteen structures, including the Glass House (1949), and features a permanent collection of 20th-century painting and sculpture, along with temporary exhibitions. The campus serves as a catalyst for the preservation and interpretation of modern architecture, landscape, and art; and a canvas for inspiration and experimentation, honoring the legacy of Philip Johnson (1906 –2005) and his partner, David Whitney (1939 –2005).

The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded nonprofit organization that works to save America’s historic places to enrich our future, reimagining historic sites for the 21st century. The guiding principle of this initiative is that historic sites must be dynamic, relevant, and evolving in order to foster an understanding of history and culture that is critical, sensory, and layered.